Jan 30, 2021
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) The next police chief of Columbus must come from outside the agency and through a national search, community activists critical of policing in Ohio’s largest city insisted Friday.
Former Chief Thomas Quinlan, demoted Thursday by Mayor Andrew Ginther, was a 30-year member of the agency and was unlikely to make the big changes needed because of his career there, the activists said.
“We need someone who can come with a fresh lens that didn’t grow up in the culture of Columbus Division of Police or the culture of policing within the state of Ohio,” said Chenelle Jones, a dean of community engagement at Franklin University and a member of a police reform commission convened two years ago by Ginther.
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Columbus Mayor Andrew J. Ginther will have a pool of 205 people to choose from in deciding who to recommend for seats on the first city civilian review board to provide oversight to the Division of Police.
The board, approved as a charter amendment by voters in November, will be able to investigate allegations of misconduct and use-of-force incidents involving Columbus police officers. A panel of nine people, who will be selected by Ginther but must be approved by the city council, is expected to be seated by spring.
Board members will serve staggered terms of at least three years. A majority of the board must be Columbus residents, but residency alone was not a requirement and some applicants are from surrounding suburbs.